1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to cartons fabricated from paper, paperboard and/or corrugated paperboard material, particularly cartons in the form of wrapper or tray type packages.
2. Background Art
Machine formed full overlap carton tray and wraparound carton structures have long been used to contain and ship heavy products, where the stacking strength of the carton is of utmost concern.
However, the overall stacking strength of such a carton can be negatively affected, if the outer, full overlap flap and attached structures are not properly sealed into position, or are damaged prior to sealing.
There are a number of full overlap tray and wrapper type package designs presently in use that fully enclose the product, but are difficult to use due to the outer-full overlap-flaps not being initially sealed at the point of initial carton erecting. This material is attached to the top horizontal flap or flaps of the shipper and extend well beyond the length of the erected carton when the top flap or flaps are upright. For packaging facilities with centralized erecting and sealing areas, this extending material can easily be damaged when the carton is transferred through the facility, which damage may compromise the stacking performance the carton is intended to provide.
In addition, some products may slightly overfill the carton's cavity which can cause the product to extend above the top of the carton, making it difficult to place the top flaps into a horizontal plane, and the outer vertical full overlap flaps properly aligned, which again may compromise the stacking strength of the carton.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide an alternative carton construction which is less susceptible to loss of stacking strength, due to improper sealing of, or damage prior to sealing of, closure or overlap flaps.
These and other desirable characteristics of the invention will become apparent in view of the present specification, claims and drawings.